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I walked every mile of the AT in one calendar year, doing my d*mndest to pass every white blaze. That's a generally considered a thruhike, by >99% of people. It's also what the ATC, and I, FWIW, consider a thruhike.
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Anyway, my earlier point keeps getting missed...

I developed as a hiker during my hike, despite the age, weight, and fitness situation I started with, to the point that not only did I finish the AT, I got fit to the point that I (just doing the math by my routinely doing 13-mile-days in MAINE, with higher days in VT/MA/CT) became capable of thruing in an average or less length of time, were I to do it again. There are reasons for that, and I believe that my greater-than-average (among thruhikers) attention to nutrition was one of them.

You may consider Thru hiking whatever you want, for yourself but as for the ATC, try again. Straight from the ATC website:Thru Hiking

A thru-hiker is a hiker or backpacker who has completed or is attempting to walk the entire Appalachian Trail in a 12-month period (not necessarily a calendar year).

I found this in 30 seconds, after remembering reading it during my research.